It was the deadliest single day for US firefighters since the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

Image Caption:The wildfire burns near Yarnell

By Monday morning, Mr Reichling said the blaze spread to nearly 8,400 acres with "zero containment".

The fire, which was started by a lightning strike, has destroyed dozens of homes and sent hundreds fleeing from the community of Yarnell, approximately 85 miles (137km) northwest of Phoenix.

Video:Blanket Gives Crews Survival Chance

Residents huddled in shelters and restaurants, watching their homes burn on TV as flames lit up the night sky in the forest above the town.

The fire killed 19 members of a 20-person hotshot crew based in nearby Prescott, Arizona.

One member of the team survived as flames roared over the men because he was moving the crew's truck, Mr Reichling said.

The team had spent recent weeks fighting fires in New Mexico and Prescott before being called to Yarnell, entering the smoky wilderness over the weekend with backpacks, chainsaws and other heavy gear used to remove brush and trees.

The disaster all but wiped out the Prescott hotshot crew, leaving the city's fire department reeling.

"We grieve for the family. We grieve for the department. We grieve for the city," Prescott Fire Chief Dan Fraijo said at a news conference Sunday evening.

"We're devastated. We just lost 19 of the finest people you'll ever meet."

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer's voice caught several times Monday as she addressed reporters and residents at Prescott High School.

"I know that it is unbearable for many of you, but it also is unbearable for me. I know the pain that everyone is trying to overcome and deal with today," she said.

A makeshift memorial including flower bouquets and American flags formed at the Prescott fire station where the crew was based.

Long-time Prescott resident Keith Gustafson showed up at the site and placed 19 water bottles in the shape of a heart, and planned to go to the scene to hand out more water.

"When I heard about this, it just hit me hard," he said. "It hit me like a ton of bricks."

Video:Arizona Wildfire Hits Mountain Peak

Hotshot crews go through specialised training and often are deployed soon after a fire breaks out.

Sometimes they hike for miles into the wilderness to build lines of protection between people and fires. They remove brush, trees and anything that might burn in the direction of homes and cities.

As a last-ditch effort at survival, members are trained to dig into the ground and cover themselves with the tent-like shelter made of fire-resistant material.

The hope in that desperate situation is that the fire will burn over them and they will survive.